Rainy Day
by Lady Azura
Summary: Call it pathetic fallacy or just a sense of impending doom… wherever the Venturi-McDonalds went, their troubles went with them and the environment seemed to reflect that.


Summary: _Call it pathetic fallacy or just a sense of impending doom… wherever the Venturi-McDonalds went, their troubles went with them and the environment seemed to reflect that._

Rating: T (for innuendos)

Disclaimer: Don't own _Life With Derek_. 'Nuff said.

Author's Note: Inspired by the gloomy weather lately. Le sigh.

Enjoy!

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**Rain****  
**_**By: Lady Azura**_

X

It started with a flash of lightening.

Then a crack of thunder.

Before long, fat drops of rain were falling from the gray sky at an incredible speed, blurring Edwin Venturi's vision and reminding him, yet again, why he _loathed_ camping with a passion.

He knew it was a bad idea right from the get go. He even tried to protest against it, but his dad had been so _ridiculously_ determined to have a family vacation (as if they really needed to show the rest of the world just how dysfunctional their blended clan could be _outside_ of London) and really, it wasn't like his argument even stood a chance when the vote was six (seven including the expected sibling) to one.

The point was… he knew nothing good would come from it. It wasn't like the trip was going to miraculously bring everyone together, or make Derek and Casey stop fighting for once. Call it pathetic fallacy or just a sense of impending doom… wherever the Venturi-McDonalds went, their troubles went with them and the environment seemed to reflect that.

But no one ever listened to _Edwin_, and so he was forced to tag along when _instead_, all he _really_ wanted to do was waste the summer away playing Babe Raider II.

Needless to say, he wasn't the least bit surprised when it began to downpour. He _was_, however, surprised when it happened while he and Lizzie were exploring the forest surrounding their campsite (her idea -- not his. She just dragged him with her.)

What had _he_ done to deserve such treatment from Mother Nature? Did he litter in a past life?

_Really_, now.

"Over here!" Lizzie's voice, distant even though she was _right beside him_, snapped him out of his reverie. He felt her hand on his shortly thereafter -- she was pulling him in another direction, which turned out to be a cave of sorts.

Once inside, she let go and glanced over at him, twisting the excess water out of her hair. "We can stay in here until the storm dies down."

Edwin simply nodded in return, and watched as she headed deeper into the cave. Worry rose in the pit of his stomach when she disappeared into the shadows for a while. He was almost tempted to call out to her -- to make sure that she hadn't been devoured by a hungry bear or something -- but then she emerged once again, carrying a pile of sticks. She dropped them by his feet and then crouched down, peering up at him expectantly.

"Do you have a lighter, by any chance? Or some matches, even?"

Edwin rolled his eyes. "_Yes_, Liz. Because I'm _such_ a notorious smoker. I can't seem to get enough of those cancer sticks."

Lizzie glared. "I was _just_ asking."

She then muttered something about having to "do it the old fashioned way" and began to rub two sticks together. He didn't know how long it took, but eventually he saw a spark and a small fire started, growing bigger and bigger as the flames began to eat away at the dry bark. He was so immersed in watching the fire that he didn't even notice when Lizzie rose to her feet and pulled off her t-shirt. When he finally _did_ look up, she was already down to her undergarments.

A strangled noise left the back of Edwin's throat and he quickly shielded his eyes, but the damage was already done.

He had seen his step-sister half naked, her skin glistening from the rain and damp hair matted to her face.

And, to top things off, his body was reacting to it.

_'God hates me.'_ He concluded mentally, wanting nothing more than to crawl under a rock.

"Take off your clothes."

Now, any normal guy would be psyched to hear an attractive girl speak such words to him -- but not Edwin. Not when the attractive girl before him was _Lizzie_.

"_Excuse_ me?" He sputtered, staring at her disbelievingly.

"Your clothes are drenched, Ed. You'll catch a cold if you stay in them. Let them dry by the fire or something."

Oh.

Well, then. It was but an innocent request from a caring but _extremely_ naïve step-sister. She meant nothing by it… but that still didn't help his, err, _problem_, nor did it change the fact that he was stuck in a cave with a girl who was practically nude!

"Umm… I'd rather not. I'm quite comfortable just the way I am." He croaked, cheeks burning.

A lie, of course. Truth be told, he was the furthest thing _from_ comfortable. He was sopping wet, his clothes were clinging to his skin, he was wearing _damp_ jeans that did little to conceal his arousal, and he was _cold_.

But he refused, even against Lizzie's persistent pushing and prodding. Then things got physical -- not like _that_, though -- and Lizzie grabbed the hem of his shirt, tugging it up over his head and tossing it elsewhere. Unfortunately, due to their close proximities, the McDonald girl was bound to feel _it_ eventually, and did. Predictably so. While in the midst of undoing his belt (in a totally platonic, familial and _not at all_ sexual way), her pinky finger accidentally grazed the bulge between his legs and she froze.

Her face went an interesting shade of red when realization dawned on her at last, and she stepped back, averting her gaze.

"Edwin… you…"

"S-sorry." He stammered quickly, flushing. "I swear it means nothing! It's just a bodily reaction to a pretty girl!"

Lizzie looked over, smiling shyly. "You think I'm pretty?"

Damn… did he say that out loud?

"Y-yeah."

Lizzie's smile grew wider, but then disappeared, only to be replaced by an embarrassed expression.

"So… uh… does it usually go away after a while?" She asked, clearing her throat.

"Yeah… but it's easier to just… you know." He made a few crude hand gestures, blushing as he did so.

Lizzie tilted her head to the side curiously, before her lips quirked upward deviously.

"Show me."

Edwin's heart nearly stopped.

"_WHAT_?" He cried.

Laughter echoed throughout the cave.

"I'm kidding!" Lizzie assured him, wiping a tear from her eye. "As if I'd _want_ to see _that_! Guys are so weird…"

Edwin glared at her.

"You're cruel."

x

The storm cleared about an hour later, and the sun came out. After redressing, Edwin and Lizzie prepared to head back to their family, but just as they reached the mouth of the cave, she grabbed his arm and held him back. Edwin stared at her curiously.

"Thank you. For what you said earlier. It means a lot." She said, leaning up and allowing her lips to brush against his cheek. She smiled warily before releasing her hold on him and running off, down the muddy trail that led back to their campsite.

Meanwhile, Edwin lifted his fingers to the spot where Lizzie had kissed him, trying to make sense of the strange tickling sensation that it had left behind. When he couldn't, he shrugged it off and began to head back as well.

In the end, Edwin decided that he didn't really mind camping.

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FIN

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**Eh, not my best work. But whatever. I hope you guys enjoyed. Fluff is fun to write.**

**Please REVIEW!**

_**-Lady Azura-**_


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